NBA G League

NBA G League Assignments/Recalls: 11/8/18

Here are Thursday’s assignments and recalls from around the NBA:

  • The Pistons recalled forward Henry Ellenson and guard Khyri Thomas from the Grand Rapids Drive, the team announced in a press release. Ellenson has averaged 21.3 points in three games for the Drive, while Thomas has averaged 19 points in three games.
  • The Thunder assigned and later recalled forward Abdel Nader from the Oklahoma City Blue, the team’s G League affiliate. Nader has played six minutes in three games with the Thunder this season.
  • The Spurs announced they have assigned forward Chimezie Metu to the Austin Spurs in the G League. Metu was drafted 49th overall in 2018 by San Antonio.
  • The Jazz assigned Tony Bradley to the Salt Lake City Stars (Twitter link). Bradley is in his second season with Utah.

NBA G League Assignments/Recalls: 11/7/18

Here are Wednesday’s assignments and recalls from around the NBA:

  • The Pistons have sent forward Henry Ellenson and guard Khyri Thomas to their Grand Rapids affiliate, the team announced in an email. Both have played two games for the Drive this season.
  • The Grizzlies have recalled rookie guard Jevon Carter from their Memphis Hustle affiliate, according to a tweet from the team.
  • The Pacers announced that guard Edmond Sumner and forward Alize Johnson have been assigned to their affiliate in Fort Wayne. Both have seen action for Indiana this season, with Sumner appearing in five games and Johnson playing three.

Central Notes: Oladipo, Moore, J.R. Smith, G. Robinson III

A week-long delay in completing the Victor Oladipo trade last summer could cost him a significant amount of money down the line and may affect whether he remains with the Pacers, according to Danny Leroux of The Athletic. The deal that sent Oladipo and Domantas Sabonis to Indiana in exchange for Paul George was agreed to on June 30, 2017, but couldn’t be completed right away due to the poison pill provision impacting Oladipo’s contract.

Because the NBA calendar starts on July 1, Oladipo was considered to be traded during his fifth year in the league. That’s significant because the Designated Veteran extension outlined in the latest collective bargaining agreement excludes players who have been dealt after their first four seasons. Designated Veteran extensions allow players to receive a starting salary worth up to 35% of the cap, rather than the standard 30%, provided they were recently named MVP, Defensive Player of the Year or made an All-NBA team.

Oladipo will be eligible for a 20% raise on his $21MM salary in 2020/21 or a new deal in 2021/22 that begins at 30% of that year’s cap. Although the situation saves money for the Pacers, it also lessens their financial advantage once Oladipo becomes a free agent. Leroux notes that Oladipo will become eligible for an extension of his current deal on October 31 of next year. Indiana may try to work out a new contract then and avoid the free agency experience.

There’s more news from the Central Division:

  • After being waived by the Pacers on Saturday, Ben Moore has joined the team’s G League affiliate in Fort Wayne, tweets Scott Agness of The Athletic. Moore hadn’t played this season and got into a pair of games as a two-way player last year.
  • Cavaliers guard J.R. Smith, who has been told twice this season that he was being removed from the rotation, will make his first start of the year tonight, coach Larry Drew says in a video tweeted by Cleveland.com. Injuries to Kevin Love and Sam Dekker have forced the Cavs to adjust their lineup, with Smith getting the starting nod at small forward and Cedi Osman moving to power forward.
  • The Pistons are also making a lineup change, with offseason addition Glenn Robinson III taking Stanley Johnson‘s spot in the starting five, relays Rod Beard of The Detroit News. The move is being made to add more shooting to a unit that has been frequently misfiring, adds Ansar Khan of MLive.

NBA G League Assignments/Recalls: 11/6/18

Here are Tuesday’s assignments and recalls from around the NBA:

  • The Warriors have assigned Jacob Evans III to the team’s G League affiliate, the Santa Cruz Warriors, according to the team’s website. Evans, who was the No. 28 overall pick in the 2018 draft, has played in seven NBA games this season, seeing just 6.3 minutes per contest.

NBA G League Assignments/Recalls: 11/5/18

Here are Monday’s G League assignments and recalls from around the NBA:

  • The Suns assigned rookie guard De’Anthony Melton to the Northern Arizona Suns, according to a team press release. Melton has already played a game for Northern Arizona this season, posting 16 points, eight rebounds and five assists in 45 minutes. The second-round pick has appeared in two games with Phoenix.
  • The Knicks assigned big man Luke Kornet to the Westchester Knicks, the NBA team tweets. Kornet has appeared in four games with the Knicks this season, going scoreless in 13 minutes.
  • The Wizards recalled guard Chasson Randle from the Capital City Go-Go, according to a team press release. Randle will travel with the team on its upcoming road trip to Dallas, Orlando and Miami. Randle led all scorers in the Go-Go’s home opener on Saturday with 37 points.
  • The Pacers assigned center Ike Anigbogu to the Fort Wayne Mad Ants, according to a team press release. The 2017 second-rounder has made one brief appearance with Indiana this season.
  • The Clippers recalled guard Jerome Robinson and guard Sindarius Thornwell from the Agua Caliente Clippers, the team tweets. Robinson, the No. 13 overall pick in this year’s draft, has made five appearances with the Clippers this season, averaging 2.4 PPG in 4.2 MPG. Thornwell, a 2017 second-round selection, has yet to make his season debut with the Clippers after appearing in 73 games last season.

And-Ones: Wizards, 2019 Draft, Williamson, NBAGL

The Wizards recently became the 28th NBA team to reach a jersey patch agreement with a corporate sponsor, teaming with GEICO on a multiyear deal, as the club announced in a press release. GEICO’s logo will now appear on the uniforms of multiple D.C.-area organizations, with the Wizards, the Washington Mystics (WNBA), and the Capital City Go-Go (G League) all getting the advertisement patch.

The Pacers and Thunder are now the only two NBA teams without ads on their uniforms, as we outline here. The NBA’s jersey sponsorship pilot program is set to run through the 2019/20 season, but the league seems likely to extend it beyond that, given its success so far.

Here are a few more odds and ends from around the basketball world:

  • ESPN’s draft gurus, including Jonathan Givony, recently revealed their complete prospect rankings for the 2019 draft, with Duke players nabbing three of the top four spots. R.J. Barrett leads the way, followed by Zion Williamson at No. 3 and Cameron Reddish at No. 4. The Blue Devils’ trio sandwiches North Carolina small forward Nassir Little at No. 2.
  • Speaking of Williamson, Chris Stone of The Sporting News took an in-depth look at the 285-pound youngster, writing that the Duke forward represents a “truly one-of-a-kind prospect.”
  • The NBA G League has reached a multiyear deal with ESPN that will allow ESPN+ subscribers to watch more than 200 games per season, the league announced today in a press release. This season’s broadcast schedule begins with three games on Tuesday.
  • The Timberwolves could still end up trading Jimmy Butler for valuable long-term pieces, and Lauri Markkanen and Zach LaVine could become long-term core pieces for the Bulls. However, in the view of Vincent Goodwill of Yahoo Sports, the 2017 trade between Minnesota and Chicago is at risk of becoming the sort of blockbuster deal that doesn’t turn out perfectly for either side.

NBA G League Assignments/Recalls: 11/4/18

Here are Sunday’s G League assignments and recalls from around the NBA:

NBA G League Assignments/Recalls: 11/3/18

Here are Saturday’s G League assignments and recalls from around the NBA:

NBA G League Assignments/Recalls: 11/2/18

Here are Friday’s G League assignments and recalls from around the NBA:

  • The Pistons assigned third-year forward Henry Ellenson and rookie guard Khyri Thomas to the Grand Rapids Drive, the team announced in a press release. Ellenson, a first-rounder in 2016, has been buried at the end of Detroit’s bench or inactive this season. The front office decided against picking up his option for next season. Thomas, a second-round pick out of Creighton acquired from the Sixers in a draft-night deal, has not made his NBA debut.
  • The Nets recalled rookie forwards Rodions Kurucs and Dzanan Musa from the Long Island Nets, Brian Lewis of the New York Post tweets. Kurucs, a second-round pick, has averaged 8.7 PPG and 4.0 RPG in 14.3 MPG through three NBA games. Musa, a late first-round selection, has made three short appearances this season. Kurucs was assigned to the Long Island team earlier in the day.
  • Rookie Celtics center Robert Williams has been assigned to the Maine Red Claws, the NBA team’s PR department tweets. The first-round pick has made four cameo appearances with the Celtics and knocked down his only field-goal attempt.
  • The Sixers assigned power forward Jonah Bolden to the Delaware Blue Coats, according to a team press release. Bolden, a second-round pick in 2017 who signed a four-year, partially-guaranteed contract in July, has seen action in four games this season but none of those stints were longer than seven minutes.

NBA G League Assignments/Recalls: 11/1/18

Here are Thursday’s G League assignments and recalls from around the NBA:

  • The Rockets have assigned center Zhou Qi to the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, tweets Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle. Qi, 22, saw one minute of action in the team’s game against Portland on Tuesday. He appeared in 18 contests with the Rockets last season.
  • The 76ers recalled rookie center Jonah Bolden from the Delaware Blue Coats, the club announced (Twitter link). Bolden is in uniform for the Sixers’ game against the Clippers Thursday night. He was drafted by Philadelphia with the No. 36 pick in 2017, then signed a four-year deal with the club this summer after playing with Maccabi Tel Aviv.